


Anger

by soongtypeprincess



Series: RanSid Gay Dads AU [7]
Category: Outcast (TV 2016)
Genre: Abuse, Alternate Universe - Parents, Bullying, Child Abuse, Family, Family Drama, Family Feels, Gay Parents, Homophobic Language, M/M, Past Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-21
Updated: 2017-12-21
Packaged: 2019-02-17 21:44:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,343
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13085967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/soongtypeprincess/pseuds/soongtypeprincess
Summary: Kyle gets into another fight at school.





	Anger

**Author's Note:**

> Megan is seven, Kyle is ten.
> 
> I DO NOT OWN THESE CHARACTERS!!

Kyle stood by Sidney’s car as he watched him talk to the principal on the school’s front steps. His father was nodding as the principal spoke, and although Kyle couldn’t hear them, he knew what they were talking about. 

Megan, who was already sitting in the backseat, rolled down her window and stuck out her head. “Bubba, what’s the hold-up?” she asked. Before he could answer, she noticed who their father was speaking to and she let out a soft gasp. “Bubba…did you fight again?”

Kyle sighed as he walked around to the other side of the car. He opened the door and slammed it behind him, and his ears began to burn as he folded his hands in his lap.

Megan rolled up her window as Sidney walked to the car. “Kyle?”

“Not now, Megan...” he muttered, turning his head from her. 

It was a quiet ride home and Kyle breathed a small sigh of relief when he saw that John’s car wasn’t in the driveway yet. Maybe he would have time to explain himself. He would tell Sidney that he had tried really hard to ignore the Clayton and his friends, even though they were screaming things at him like “queer boy” and “faggot.” 

He hated the word “faggot.” It was the word that Mildred used to try to get under Sidney’s skin. It never fazed Sidney, but Kyle would have to excuse himself and sit on the front porch until it was time to leave.

Kyle knew he shouldn’t feel hate toward anyone, especially his grandmother and those boys at school, but every day was getting worse.

The car stopped and Sidney looked at them in the rear-view mirror. “Ya’ll go to your rooms and start on your homework,” he said.

Kyle and Megan looked at one another before hopping out of the car.

John had warned him that he would be “in it real deep” if he got into another fight, and Kyle wasn’t too sure of what that meant. John had a temper, and he had raised his voice to Kyle sometimes when he scolded him. However, his father never laid a hand on him, but that didn’t stop the fear that began to race through him.

He had always thought that about his mother, every time she woke up in a seemingly good mood. But, that would change in an instant. He shook his head hard, as if to fling the memories and the fear from his mind.

Kyle’s heard the soft hum of the Prius pull into the driveway. He watched as Bella, their 8 year-old black lab mix, run up to the car and jump on John as he got out. Kyle watched him try to push the big dog off him, laughing as Bella licked his arms.

He heard the front door open and John’s usual greeting to Sidney, “Honey, I’m home!” Bella barked and Kyle listened to her run up and down the stairs until she started scratching Kyle’s door.

An hour later, with Bella snoozing on his bed, Kyle sat at his desk thumbing through his English textbook. He hadn’t been called downstairs for a talk. Maybe Sidney didn’t tell John.

A soft knock on the door woke up Bella, who lazily “boofed” at Sidney as he walked into the room. “Go wash up for supper,” he said.

The family sat at the table enjoying hot lasagna and salad. John broke the silence that had been hovering over the table since after he said the blessing.

“Ya’ll are mighty quiet tonight,” he said. “How was everyone’s day? Megan, you have a good time at school?”

Megan nodded. “Uh huh,” she replied.

“Tell me somethin’ you learned,” John smiled.

She shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” he laughed. “What am I payin’ that school for then?”

Megan giggled before taking a big bite of lasagna.

“Kyle, what about you? How was your day?”

The tension returned to the table and Sidney took a drink of his red wine and wiped his mouth. “Kyle,” he said. “Tell him.”

John cut his eyes curiously at his husband and then looked at his son again. “What do you wanna tell me, Kyle?” he asked.

Kyle looked down at his lap and twisted his napkin as his eyes started to burn again. “I got in a fi...” he trailed off in a mumble.

“Look at your Pop when you talk to him,” Sidney gently said.

Kyle raised his eyes and met John’s. He swallowed the lump in his throat and said, “I got in a fight.”

John bit the inside of his cheek as he continued to look at him. “Again, Kyle?” he asked.

“Yes, sir...” he said.

John sighed as he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his broad chest. 

Megan slowly pushed away her plate. “May I be excused, please?” she asked in a soft voice.

Sidney nodded. “Yeah, baby,” he responded in kind. “It’s okay.”

She slid out of her chair and ran up the stairs. 

Megan’s sudden departure made Kyle feel even more anxious. He licked his lips and took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Pop,” he said.

“Again, son?” John repeated in a stern tone. He leaned forward and placed his elbows on the table.

“They cornered me,” Kyle explained. “What was I supposed to do?”

“Go to your room,” his father ordered.

Kyle sniffed back fresh tears. “Pop, please...”

“Now, son.”

“Honey,” Sidney intervened, “let’s hear him out.”

John cleared his throat and put on his glasses. “You’re supposed to get a teacher. Why didn’t you?”

“It was in the bathroom, Pop,” Kyle whimpered. “They trapped me in there.”

“What exactly happened?” Sidney asked.

Kyle focused his eyes on his plate. “I was washing my hands in the bathroom and I was about to leave until Clayton and his friends came in and cornered me.”

“Who’s Clayton?” John asked.

“He’s a boy in a higher grade than me.”

“So how many were there?”

Kyle sniffed and wiped his nose with his shirt sleeve. “Clay and three other boys. The same ones that always pick on me.”

“Is this how all the fights start?” Sidney asked as he handed his handkerchief to Kyle, who took it and wiped his nose again.

Kyle nodded. “Well, sometimes it’s at lunch. But this time was the worst because they were able to get me alone, where no one could see.” He notice John shift uncomfortably in his chair, but he continued. “They started callin’ me names and told me that I’m…” his voice trailed off again.

“That you’re what?” John said.

“That I’m gonna get AIDS…because I live with…” His voice broke. He couldn’t say the word. He hated it so much. “Pop…I’m sorry…”

John just nodded and sighed, “It's okay, son.”

Kyle sniffed. “I tried to leave but Clayton pushed me into the wall and threw my backpack in the garbage. When he let me pass, one of his friends pushed me in the back and I fell on the floor. Every time I tried to get up, Clayton would kick me down again.”

Tears began to fall fast down his cheeks. “They said that my mom is a crack whore and that she tried to kill me because she didn’t want me…which is true, I guess.”

“Kyle, sweetie,” Sidney said, but the boy stopped him.

“It’s true, Dad!” he exclaimed. “She did try to kill me!” He inhaled deeply and choked out, “I hate her sometimes. I know I shouldn’t hate anyone, but I hate her!” He looked at Sidney and said, “And I hate Grandma, too!”

Sidney’s expression didn’t change at Kyle’s words. He knew perfectly well why Kyle felt the way he did. He and Kyle had similar pasts, too.

John, on the other hand, didn’t approve. “Kyle,” he warned, “that is your Daddy’s mama you’re talking about.”

“It’s fine, John,” Sidney insisted.

“She’s horrible to him, Pop,” Kyle told John, “you know she is. She treats Dad like a slave and he does all these things for her and all she does is complain to him and calls him names…she calls you names, too, Pop! The same names Clayton calls me!” His face turned redder and he looked at his hands in his lap. “I’m sorry I said I hate Grandma. I’m sorry, Dad.”

“It’s okay, honey,” Sidney whispered. 

John moved his chair closer and put his hand on Kyle’s shoulder. “Did you tell your teacher what happened?”

Kyle shook his head. “The last time I got into a fight, she didn’t do anything. She just told the principal that I got into a fight and then I was the one that got in trouble, even after I told them why I got in a fight.”

“Wait a moment,” Sidney said, “your teacher did nothing?”

“She wrote me up.”

“What? Why didn’t she go to the principal?

“She did go to the principal. She took me there, but she told him that she doesn’t think that I’m telling the truth. She said I’m makin’ it up and hurtin’ myself so that I can get attention.”

John stared at him in disbelief. “She thought you were lyin’?” He licked his lips, his frown growing deeper on his face. “What did the principal say?”

Sidney answered him. “He told me that if Kyle continues to start more fights then he’ll be expelled.”

“But I don’t start them!” Kyle yelled.

Sidney put up his hand to calm him. “We believe you, son,” he assured.

“This isn’t fair!” Kyle’s voice began to rise. “I never start them! I don’t wanna fight, but Clayton keeps pushing me around and if I try to ignore him, he still tries to beat me up! So, just because I try to defend myself, I’m the one that’s gonna be expelled??” He paused and took a deep breath as he clenched his father’s handkerchief in his fist. “I fucking hate that school!” he shouted.

“Kyle Anderson,” John scolded.

“I do, Pop!” Kyle continued to yell. “I don’t have any friends! The teacher doesn’t like me and everyone makes fun of me! I hate it there! I hate it! Fuck everybody there!”

“Kyle, that’s enough,” Sidney said.

Kyle folded his arms on the table and laid down his head, sobbing. 

John patted his back. “Sit up,” he said gently.

His son moved out of his seat and sat on John’s knee, who embraced him as he cried.

“Calm down, now, just breathe, son.” John took the handkerchief from Kyle’s hand and wiped his hot face.

Kyle whimpered. “I’m sorry for cussin’, Papa.” 

“It’s okay,” John said with a grin. “It’s okay to be angry, Kyle,” John assured him. “What isn’t okay is when you hold your anger in. It can build up until you pop. You just popped.”

Sidney moved to Kyle’s chair. “We believe you, son,” he said again, “I wish you had told us this sooner.”

“I…didn’t…wanna get…in more…trouble,” Kyle panted through his sobs.

“You know you can talk to us, honey,” Sidney told him, “especially if there are adults at school who aren’t helping you.” He sighed as he stood up and began to clear the table. “I just…I don’t know. It just blows my mind that a teacher would—“

John could sense Sidney’s frustration and said, “Kyle, why don’t you go to your room and calm down?” John said as he stroked his hair. “We’ll talk later tonight, okay? Go splash some cold water on your face, too.”

Kyle nodded and left the kitchen with his head hanging low as his crying began to cease. 

“We’ll wrap up your dinner,” John told him as he watched him leave. He stood to help his husband put away the leftovers.

Later, they were standing at the sink, Sidney washing the dishes and John rinsing them. Sidney said, “Maybe we should take him out of that school.”

“And send him where, babe?” John asked.

“Isn’t there a school on your commute to work?” Sidney handed him a glass to rinse.

“Yeah, but I’m sure it’s expensive,” John muttered. “Besides, I don’t always have a morning class.”

“I can take him on some days,” Sidney said.

“Baby, we don’t have the money.” John placed the glass in the dish rack.

“We have savings.”

“That’s for the kids’ college,” John reminded him, “and they are nowhere near college-age right now.”

“I’m just afraid that if we keep him in that school,” Sidney said, “and he continues to be bullied, that he’s just going to keep getting in trouble with the principal while this other little bastard gets to continue to terrorize kids, and then before we know it, Kyle gets older and has an undeserved reputation with being a troublemaker because nobody believes that he has a bully.”

John glanced at him and grinned. “I thought I was the worrisome Papa Bear around here.”

“I’m serious, John. This could have a lasting effect on him if something isn’t done. And if the school won’t do anything, then we have to do something.”

“So, we send him to another school and just hope it doesn’t happen there, too?” John asked.

Sidney shook his head in frustration. “At least the school wouldn’t be in Rome.”

They were quiet again as they continued cleaning the dishes. “What about Megan?” John pointed out. “Megan likes the fact that she and her big brother go to the same school. We may have savings but not enough to move two kids.”

“I know…” Sidney whispered.

John took a handful of silverware and rinsed them. “I say we arrange a little meeting with this principal and teacher.”

“As long as you don’t turn it into one of your ‘come to Jesus’ kinda meetings,” Sidney laughed.

“Hey, now, those are my best,” John smiled.

“Bubba?” Megan whispered through Kyle’s door. “Are you okay? I heard you screamin’ downstairs.”

There was no answer at first, but Kyle eventually said that she could come in, and she sat on the bed beside him.

Bella was stretched out on the floor, snoozing.

Kyle was lying on his back and staring at the ceiling, his nose still red from crying. “I’m not in trouble,” he told her.

“Really?” she said.

Kyle sat up and leaned against the headboard. “I told them what happened and what the teacher told the principal. Turns out, he told Dad that I would be expelled if I kept startin’ fights.”

“But you don’t start fights, Bubba,” Megan said, “I know you don’t. Clayton is the one that does.”

“I know that, Megan,” he said, “and Dad and Pop believe me.” He bit his lip and crossed his legs. “Pop seemed pretty mad, though. Not at me, but that the teacher didn’t think I was tellin’ the truth.”

“Why would she think you’re lyin’?” 

“Because I don’t think she likes me. Because of how I used to live…and I’m slow at math.”

“I hate math, too, though,” Megan assured him.

“Yeah, but you understand it,” he said, “I have a lot of trouble. I think it frustrates her.”

“I wonder why she’s a teacher then if teachin’ kids who don’t know how to do math frustrates her.”

Kyle looked at her, thoughtfully. “I don’t know,” he said. “You got a point, though. If you don’t like teachin’ kids, then why be a teacher? That doesn’t make sense!”

“Hey! Did your class get a flyer for the Book Fair?” Megan exclaimed.

“What? No! I didn’t get one!” Kyle said, shocked. 

“Hang on, I’ll go get mine!”

Megan jumped off the bed with a loud thud, waking Bella who let out a startled whine. She opened the bedroom door and ran into Sidney’s legs.

“Oh, no!” Sidney lamented as he watched his daughter fall backward with a grunt. “I’m sorry, sweetheart!” He laughed as he helped her to her feet.

“It’s okay, Daddy,” she said. “I was just gettin’ the Book Fair paper. It’s in two weeks!”

Sidney’s eyes grew wide with excitement. “Oh, wow, already? Tell you what: why don’t we all look at it later? Your papa and I want to talk to ya’ll.”

Kyle moved the edge of the bed. “Both of us?”

“That’s right,” Sidney replied, “so ya’ll come downstairs.”

Kyle looked curiously at Megan, who just shrugged as she left the room. 

The kids came downstairs to find John standing in the middle of the living room with his hands on his hips. Sidney stood beside him as the kids sat on the sofa.

John cleared his throat and looked at Megan. “Bug, would you be sad if Bubba went to another school?”

Kyle’s eyes grew wide, but he didn’t speak. He looked over at Megan who was pursing her lips in thought.

“Well…maybe a little bit…” she said.

“Honey, does this Clayton kid or anyone else give you trouble, too?” John asked. “Is there anything you need to tell us?”

Megan shook her head. “No, Papa,” she answered. “Honest. No one really picks on me. I get teased sometimes, but not like Bubba.”

“You’d tell us, though, if the teasing got worse, right?”

She nodded. “Yes, sir, I would.” She leaned back into the sofa. “Is Bubba going away?”

Sidney replied, “No, baby. He’s not going away.”

“There’s a school on my way to work,” John explained, “and your dad and I were talking about the possibility of Kyle transferring there.” He quickly looked over at Kyle. “We’re going to go have a talk with your teacher and principal first, though, son. Your dad’s already sent them both an email to set up a meeting tomorrow.”

Kyle gulped. “I don't have to go, do I?”

“No,” John said, “we’re not going to make you come with us.”

 

“Are you gonna have a ‘come to Jesus’ meeting, Papa?” Megan asked.

Sidney giggled as John grinned. “I really hope it doesn’t come to that, baby. However, we are going to let them know that they have a bully problem and not a damn thing is being done about it.” John looked at Kyle again. “What do you think, kiddo? Would you be willing to try another school?”

Kyle looked down at his hands. “I…I don’t know.”

“We’ll make sure that you don’t get left behind in your learnin’,” Sidney assured him. “In fact, you can take a placement test when you’re applying. I have a feeling you could get into an Honors class, if you want to, that is.”

“I guess so,” Kyle said with a hopeful smile.

“You don’t have to make a decision today, Kyle,” John told him. “Just think about it. Maybe our meeting with your teacher will help the situation. If not…well, we’ll check out the other school.”

Kyle asked, “Pop, can I stay home tomorrow? Please?”

“We thought about that, actually,” John replied, “but, you need to go to school in the morning.” He sighed when he saw Kyle bite his lip and look down at his lap. “I know you’re probably scared, but—“

“I’m not scared,” Kyle muttered. “I’m just so tired of it.”

“We know, honey,” Sidney assured him.

“But if this Clayton kid messes with you tomorrow,” John said firmly, “you go straight to the office and give me or your Daddy a call and we’ll come get you.”

“Yes, sir,” Kyle replied as he leaned back into the sofa.

Megan wrinkled her nose and huffed as she crossed her arms.

“What is it, Bug?” Sidney asked her with a grin.

“I just wish that I was bigger,” she admitted, “then I could beat up Clayton and see how he likes it.”

“Megan,” John said, “that’s not the right attitude to have.”

“I know, Papa, but it makes me so mad!”

Sidney and John smiled at each other. “We know you love your big bubba, sweetie,” Sidney told her.

“Ew, you love me??” Kyle teased her.

Megan didn’t reply but jumped toward him and gave him choking hug around his neck.

“Arrghhh!” Kyle screamed. “Girl germs!!” 

Megan stuck out her tongue and blew a raspberry at his face, but Kyle wet the tip of his finger with his own spit and stuck it in her ear.

His sister squealed. “EWWWW Bubba!! Gross!!” She backed away and rubbed her ear.

John crossed his arms. “All right, that’s enough. Ya’ll go brush your teeth and put on your PJs.”

Suddenly, both children snorted through their noses and pursed their lips, but Sidney intervened. “Excuse me! What have I told ya’ll about hockin’ loogies at each other?”

John laughed but Sidney didn’t find it funny.

The kids began to stand up to go spit in the kitchen sink, but Sidney stopped them, saying, “No, ya’ll sit there for a bit with those loogies in your mouths.”

Their eyes grew wide but they sat on the edge of the sofa, their faces beginning to distort in disgust.

“Sid, that’s harsh,” John said, still laughing, “and gross.”

“Good,” Sidney replied, “they know I don’t like it and yet they do it.” He paused and stared at them, watching them bounce impatiently. “Okay, ya’ll go outside and spit that out. Don’t do that again.”

John stepped aside to get out of the way of his running children, and he looked at his husband. “That took a wild turn.”

Sidney sighed, “Of course it did. We’re Andersons.”

\----------

An hour later, John peeked around Kyle’s bedroom door. “Lights out, son,” he said.

Kyle put his book, A Wind in the Door, onto his bedside table. He stretched the sheet across his chest as John sat on the mattress.

“Pop?” 

“Yeah?”

“Is hate a sin?” he asked.

John smirked. “Well…you see, son—“

“It’s just, you know,” Kyle interrupted, “I said that I hated everybody at the school and Grandma. I was angry and I didn’t really mean that I hate them. It’s just that…I don’t get why Clayton bullies me and why Grandma doesn’t like Dad.” He paused and sighed. “It isn’t fair.”

John nodded. “Some people don’t want others to be happy,” he said, “no matter where that happiness comes from. I don’t think Mildred hates your Daddy. She hates me; I know that’s for sure. She thinks I made your Dad gay.”

“What?” Kyle said. “That’s stupid.”

“Yeah, well, maybe not stupid,” John corrected him, “more ignorant. The difference between the two is that ignorant can learn that what they say and do is wrong. Well…sometimes.” John stopped to think for a moment. “You remember your Sunday school lesson last week? About Job and the tests that God gives each of us?”

“Yeah, I remember,” Kyle said. “But…it’s hard. Also, Ms. Dubose said I shouldn't question why God made a bet with the Devil just to show off how faithful Job was. I'm sorry, Pop, but I don't like that story.”

John smiled. "Your Sunday school teacher shouldn't discourage you from questioning your faith. Everybody goes through it."

“And, Pop, I know that the Bible says that hate is a sin but when I get mad I can’t help but feel hateful, especially when Grandma is mean to Dad. I hate her for it!”

“Hate isn’t exactly a sin,” John said as he tucked the sheets around Kyle. “It’s human nature to feel anger toward people who do others wrong. And, to be honest, I feel hate for her, too, sometimes. I can’t help it either.”

Kyle stared at John’s cross pendant that he always wore. The gold metal glinted in the lamp light. “I didn’t know that,” he muttered. 

John grinned at him. “All people are capable of hating someone or something,” he said. “The trick is forgiving the thing you hate, and to forgive yourself, too. I used to have a big temper and I’m sure it came from my dad. Either it was hereditary or I learned it…because he was so angry all the time.”

Kyle looked at his father. He knew about John’s childhood and about John’s abusive father, who died during John’s senior year of college. Kyle thought of his own mother and wondered if he got his anger from her. 

“I learned how to push my anger down deep inside me,” John continued, “I realized that by doing that, I was able to hurt others. With my fists and my words. Then, I met your Daddy. He’s a damn saint; I don’t know how I would be without him. He helped me a lot with my anger. I’m not cured, by any means; I’m still capable of it. But I learned how to forgive because of your daddy. That’s why I call him St. Sidney sometimes; he’s very good at forgiveness, especially if you consider how him mama treated him.” He paused to laugh. “Hell, he even forgave me when we got back together years later.”

“Back together?” Kyle asked, surprised. “When did ya’ll break up in the first place?”

“Oh, that was a long time ago. After I finished college and went on a mission trip with my church.” He paused and stared briefly at the wall, his mind back in the past. Then, he said, “It’s a long story; I’ll tell you about it one day.”

Kyle smiled at him. It never occurred to him that his fathers were once separated or could ever be apart, for that matter. They acted like they had been together forever! 

“Promise me something, though,” John said. “Don’t keep things that are hurting you to yourself. It’s okay if you can’t fix something on your own. We’re here for you, okay? We’re family, right?”

Kyle nodded. “Yep, we are. Thanks, Pop.”

John leaned down and kissed his forehead “You’re welcome.” He stood up with a soft grunt and turned off the bedside lamp. He stepped behind the door. “Open or closed?”

“Um…can you just leave it cracked?”

John moved the door closer to the frame. “Good?”

“Yes,” he mumbled lazily. “Night. Love you…”

“Love you, too, son.”


End file.
